Braiding-machine



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' T. PINIG ANY.

BRAIDING MACHINE.

No. 416,905. PatentedDeo. 10, 1889.

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T. P INIGAN. BRAIDING MACHINE;

No. 416,905. I r Patented Dec; 10, 1889.

N. PETEH-Phota-Lltmpaphr. Washington D; a

T. FINIGAN. BRAIDING MACHINE.

3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

(No Model.)

4 an end view of a braiding-machine embody- I UNITED) STATES PAT NT OFFICE.

IIoMAs'FINIGAN, or PATERSON, NEW JERSEY, i

BRAIDING- MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming art of Letters Patent 416,905, dated; Decemberlo, 1389.

Application filed September 23,1887. Sen'alNo. 250,521. (No model.)

Be it known that I, THOMAS FINIGAN, a zen of the United States, residing atPaterson, in the county of Passaic and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Braiding-Machines; and I do declare the following to be a full,

clear, and exact description of the invention,

such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification. a

My invention relates to machines for making braided cord either with or without a core; or for enveloping wire, or whip-stocks,

, or other articles with a braided covering. It

has especial reference to machines of this class in which two sets of bobbins move in opposite directions for the purpose of interlocking or lacing the threads to form a braid.

The object of my invention is to dispense with many parts of the old machines in common use and to simplify the whole, producing a machine which can be run at a much greater velocity than has heretofore been possible, and thereby turning out more goods in a given time.

My invention consists, mainly, in a set of bobbins which are carried in a circular path in one direction and a setof shuttles which are driven in the opposite direction, the shutties being guided in annular grooves and crossing the path of. the threads from the bobbins, suitable means being provided for cansin g the shuttles to pass alternately above and 7 below the bobbin-threads, andthereby interlace with them. i

In the accompanyingdrawings, Figure 1 is ing my improvements. Fig. 2 is a side elevation thereof; Fig. 3, a plan .view; Fig. 4, an enlarged plan View, partly brokenaway; and Fig. 5, a vertical cross-section of the bobbincarrier, shuttles, and attendant mechanism; Figs. 6 and 7, an elevation and plan of one of the shuttles. Fig. 8 is a detail of the bobbin, stud, and tension-spring.

.Similar letters indicate like parts in all the figures.

the upright A is a shaft 13, furnishedwith fast and loose pulleys b b. On the innerend ,ofthis shaft is abevel-geanQ,meshing with p two bevel-gears D E, one above and one below the axis of the shaft B and bothaof the same size. The bevel-gear D is secured to the lower end of a tubular shaft D, which is mounted to revolve in a sleeve F, supported by the rail c. .On the upper end of this shaft,

ismounted the bobbin-carrier, which consists:

of a series of arms d, radiating to a ring Dif; concentric with the shaft D This ring 1s preferably broad and fiat, as shown, and upon, it

it at equal distances are mountedthe bob-if 'bins G upon stationarystuds g near the outer edge of the ring D i One end of a tension-spring G issecured below the bobbin G, the other end pressing upon the thread on the bobbin. The end of the spring is clamped between the ringDt' and a collar onthestud g, as shown in Fig. j p e Near the bobbin is a U-shapedbracket l-I, rising from the outer edge of the ring D In the upper end of each arm of the bracket eye at the center of the machine in line with the shaft D. The advantages of this conis an eye It, through which the thread from the bobbin G is passed and then" taken to an struction are greater simplicity and cheap ness of manufacture by doing away with the studs and nuts usuallyemployed to fasten the ends of these springs andamore uniform tension on the thread at all times, whether the bobbin be full or nearly empty. I p

In radial line 'with each Ijof'the U-shaped brackets H isan upright I, fastened upon; i, 1

the ring D These uprights support a smaller flat ring D concentric with ring D In the under face of ring D is an annular groove d. Directly below it, in the upper face of'ri'ng D is a similar groove (1 of the same diameter as groove 'df.) Seated loosely in the circular raceway formed by these grooves are several shuttles K, equalin numioo her to the bobbins G, each consisting of a frame curved to fit the grooves d d and pointed at one end, the edges being rounded and smooth. In the frame is mounted a bobbin k, which is centered at one end upon a spindle is and at the other upon a rounded stud W. A spiral spring k encircles the spindle 7c and presses the end of the bobbin against the frame of the shuttle, thereby producing a tension upon the thread asit unwinds from the bobbin k. The spindle 7c is pivotally attached to the frame K, preferably by the'pin upon which the hook-shaped wire 1& is pivoted to the frame, said wire being for a purpose hereinafter set forth. The pivoting of the spindle allows it to be turned out-' ward when it is desired to remove the bobbin As the "rings D D form part of one structure,-being united by the uprights I, it is evident that if left to themselves the shuttles would be carried around with the rings. To

prevent this and to make them run in the opposite direction, there-is provided inside of the tubular shaft D" a smaller tubular shaft E, upon which is mounted the bevel gear E. The upper end of this shaft projects above. the end of the shaft D and carries a set of radial arms or sweeps e-one for each shuttlereaching out over and close to the ring D At the outer end of each sweep is a small triangular head e, which travels in an annular groove 01 formed in the upper face of the ring D outside of and concentric with the groove (1 These radial sweeps 6 come in contact with the rear ends of the shuttles K and drive them in a circular path in a direction .QPPOSit-e' to that of theringD and bobbins G and at the same speed.

The operation of the above-described parts is as follows: Power being applied to the fast pulley b, the shaft B and bevel-gearC are rotated, thereby driving the bevel-gears D E in opposite directions. bobbi-nsG revolve in one direction, the sweeps e and the shuttles in the other. The point-at which all the threads meet is so located that the threads from the bobbins G pass normally above thev points of the shuttles K, between the rings D and D, as shown at the left hand of Fig. 5; but at every alternate passing of shuttle and bobbin the bobbinthread must be made to pass below theshuttle in order to interlace with the shuttle-thread to form the braid. To accomplish this result, I attach to the upper rail a a set of curved arms L, equal in number to the bobbins G and extending to equidistant points around the circumference of ring D The ends of these. arms L lie close to the ring. D between 'it and the bobbins G, being inclined down- The rings D D and the interlacing with the shuttle-thread. The triangular shape of the head 6 of the sweep e prevents the thread from catching on the sweep. It will be noticed that the bobbinthread is subjected to very little friction when it passes the shuttles, because, although it is crowded into one of the grooves d d in the upperor lower rings D D yet as these rings are moving with the thread there is no rubbing of the thread against them. The only friction upon the thread is that due to the smooth rounded edge of the shuttle, which is very slight. This feature reduces the danger of breaking a thread, which is far more imminent in machines where the thread is swept around in contact with a. stationary ring,or a shuttle-carrier moving in the opposite direction. In fact, the crowding of the thread into the groove d or d enables it to pass the shuttle more evenly and with less slack, for the edges of the groove take hold of the thread and aid in carrying it along. This operation is also assisted by the upright I, just infront of which the thread passes, and which gives the thread a firm bearing close. to the shuttle.

Whenever the bobbin-thread has passed overor under a shuttle, there is a slight amount of slack to be taken up. This is done by a u-shaped-spring M, one end of which-is fastened to the lower part of thebracket H, while the free end rest-s with some pressure upon the bobbin-thread where it crosses the space between the two upright armsof the U-shaped bracket H. These springs also serve to stop the machine when the thread breaks. In such an event the free end of the spring immediately .fiies down to the ring D as shown at the right hand of Fig. 5, and being long enough to project beyond the edge of the ring it comes, in a half-revolution of the ring, in contact with one of two fingers N, projecting upward from a rock-shaft O, mounted in suitable bearings on the Iallfl. At one end ofthis rock-shaft is a downwardly- .extending finger N, engaging with a hook 2) upon a shipper-bar P. Aspiral spring 19 ex: erts a constant pressure upon the shipper-bar, tending to throw the belt over on the loose pulley. hen the rock-shaft O is partially rotated by the end of spring Mcoming against the finger N, the shipper-bar is released and the belt is shifted, thereby stopping the machine. I also provide means for stopping the machine in case a shuttle-thread breaks. A wire is pivoted at one end to the inner side of the shuttle and extends along above the axis of the bobbin to the other end of the shuttle, where it is bent at about right angles and passes through a slot in the shuttle. The

extreme end'of the wire is' bent downward to.

prevent it from being drawn through the slot. The thread from the shuttle-bobbin passes up over this wire it and keeps it drawn inwardly, as shown in full lines in Fig. 7 and at the right-hand of Fig, 5. When the shuttle-thread breaks, the wire k4 is free to move, and centrifugal force throws it outward, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 7 and at theleft hand of Fig. 5. In this position it comes almost instantly in contact with a finger q, projecting up from one end of one of a set of short rockshafts Q, turning in hearings in, the brackets H and the uprights I. On the outer ends of these rock-shafts are cams g, which, when grooved drum 2;, loosely mounted on a shaft V.

turned downward by the wire k striking the finger q, come, in a half-revolution of the ring D, in contact with one of the fingers N, and stop the machine in the manner heretofore described. l l

It is sometimes desirable to cover a core with a lapping of thread or wire before the braided covering is put on. To accomplish this, I extend the shaft E through the lower rail a and mount upon its end a head R, carrying a disk R and one or moreguides 1". On the disk are mounted one or more bobbins R the thread from which passes through the guides 0. hen the shaft E revolves, the thread from the bobbin R is wound upon the core, which then passes up through the hollow shaft E to the point where thebraided covering is applied. For reeling up the completed cord, motion is transmitted through a pair of bevel-wheels s s to an upright shaft S, provided'with a worm which meshes with a worm-gear T, mounted upon a stud. A pair of gears it, which can be changed to give different speeds when desired, communicate motion to a shaft U, on which is a windingdrum it, around which the cord is wrapped several times, passing at every turn over a The cord then goes to a reel 20 on a shaft IV, which is rotated by a band from a wheel on the'shaft U. The band is loose enough to slip when the reel fills up, so as to prevent winding the cord too light and allow for the variation in the diameter of the reel.

The advantages of my machine are several. I arrange the two sets of bobbins in substantially thesame horizontal plane. The thread makes but one turn in going from the bobbin to the point where the braid is formed, thus reducing the friction to a minimum. the movements of the bobbins and shuttles are continuous and in circular paths, which is the most economical mode of. applying the power. The machine is composed of but few parts, all in full sight and easily repaired. It is well balanced and can be run at least eight times as fast as the ordinary machines here tofore in use.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patcut, is-- 1. A braiding-machine having a bobbincarrier provided with two guides arranged one above the other and forming a circular raceway, a set of shuttles support-ed in the raceway by having their opposite edges en Again,

the bobbins, ,of a set of shuttles seated in saidraceway and lying in the same horizontal plane as the bobbins, a shaft having arms for driving theshuttles, and means for rotating the two shafts in opposite directions, sub-.

stantially as described.

The combination, with a tubular shaft carrying two annularly-groo ved r ngs, formin g a continuous circular raceway and adapted to receive a set of bobbins,of a set of shuttles seated in the raceway, a shaft carrying a set of arms for driving the shuttles, and means forrotating the shafts in opposite directions, substantially as described.

4., In a braiding-machine, the combination, with the ring D havingthe annular groove (t and the ring D having the annular groove d and uni-ted by the uprights I, of the curved shuttles K, seated loosely in the grooves (1 (Z and means for driving the shuttles along the annular grooves, substantially as described. I V

5. The combination, with the rings D D carrying the bobbins G and having the annular grooves d (1 d of the curved shuttles K, the sweeps e, having the triangular heads e traveling in the groove d, and means for revolving the bobbin-carrying rings and the shuttles in opposite directions, substantially as described. l l l 6. In a-braiding-machine, the combination, with the rings D D united by the uprights I and provided with the annular grooves d (P, and having the bobbins G mounted on the ring D of the U-shaped brackets H, the shuttles K, seated in the grooves d"d the sweeps e, the arms L, having inclined ends, and means for revolving the rings and the sweeps in opposite directions, substantially as described. l

7. The combination, with the rings D D adapted to receive the bobbins G, of the shuttles K, the sweeps e, the stationaryarms'L,

having inclined ends lying'jclose to the edge of the ring D? and projecting downwardly, between said ring and the bobbinsG, andmeans for revolving the rings and the sweeps in opposite directions, substantially as.described.

8. The combination, with a suitable supporting-plate, of a stud 9, adapted to receive a bobbin G, and a tension-spring G, having one end clamped between the supportingplate and a collar on the stud and its free end lying near the stud g, substantially as described. 1 Y

9. The combination, with the ring D carrying the bobbin G, of the U-shaped bracket- I-l, the take-up spring M,.having its .free end passing between the arms of the bracket, the rock-shaft 0, having the fingers N N", adapted the path of said shuttle, a cam on the end of said rock-shaft, a spring-actuated shipperbar, and intermediate mechanism adapted to be actuated by said can] and release the shipper-bar, substantially as described.

11. The combination, with the rings D D", of the shuttles K, each having a hook-shaped Wire 70 pivoted to the inner side of said shuttle above the axis of the shuttle-bobbin, with its free end passing through a slot to the outside of the shuttle, a rock-shaft Q, mounted on the ring D and having finger q and cam q, rock-shaft 0, having fingers N N, and shipper-bar P, engaged by said finger N, substantially as described.

mounted upon the shaft E and carrying one or more bobbins R for the purpose of wind,- ing a layer of thread upon a core before the braided covering is applied, substantially as described.

13. A braiding-machine having a bobbincarrier provided with a circular raceway for the shuttles, said raceway consisting of two concentric guides to receive the shuttles, arranged one above the other, so that the thread from the bobbin passes between said guides to the point of braiding, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in presence of two Witnesses.

THOMAS FINIGAN.

\Vitnesses:

ROBINSON WHITE, CHARLES P. LINCOLN. 

